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RAK Porcelain has clinched yet another illustrious title at the A’Design Award and Competition. Partnering with Gemma Bernal, the chef’s exclusive master collection ‘Suggestions’ tableware has won the Silver A’ Design Award in the Bakeware, Tableware, Drinkware and Cookware Design Category. Renu Oommen, RAK Porcelain's Chief Marketing Officer stated, “We congratulate Ms. Gemma Bernal, the production team and our employees across the globe for their consistent and splendid performance and are delighted to extend this success to all partners, customers, and well-wishers.” Suggestions is an extensive collection of 10 ergonomic series that focuses on solving the needs of chefs. Each porcelain dish promotes sharing on a center table, while serving specific solutions like water drops of melted ice. Hiding the mess of shell foods like mussels, escargots. Items that make a buffet more dynamic and conveniently and dining neatly and comfortably with grilled meat. A collection were each piece has an interesting and functional reason besides attractive shapes. This project is inspired by chefs for chefs. With Suggestions, chefs can express their culinary creations as the tableware offers them a platform to enhance their creations and improvise gastronomic ideas while customers will cherish each offering as petite pieces of art. The main quality of this tableware is to display chef creations prominently and keep servings in optimal conditions for the best experiential dining opportunity. A perfect example is ‘Amaze’, this dish keeps solid ice separated from the melted water, which then keeps food untouched and fresh for a long time. Also with Amaze we find a variant that places carbonic ice inside keeping food (sushi for example) cool and visually striking as it gives off fresh smoke. ‘Create’, ‘Shaped’ and ‘Shared’ series cater to both bite sized and shared platter food options for groups. In the ‘Chill’ series, caviar is kept on ice without a tangible contact; the collection makes for stunning tabletop presentations. With ‘Picked’ indulge into cocktail appetizers in little lilies made of porcelain that allows one to easily stay mobile while dining. Enjoy a scrumptious portion of meat on ‘Staged’ as its irregular dotted texture separates the fluids from your meal. ‘Ashore’ offers tidy dining as one can easily dispose shells of molluscs from soups and food. ‘Swirls’ is wisely designed to enhance the aroma of brewed coffee effortlessly. The entire development was done over a period of one and a half years across Barcelona to the Emirates researching on the real necessities of HORECA chefs. We focused on understanding their limitations, the lack of available options and recorded their inputs and opinions to thereby provide practical tools which ‘suggest’ solutions that expand creativity on gastronomic services. Merging Gemma Bernal’s immaculate designing and the production teams’ superior technological expertise RAK Porcelain conceived a winner – ‘Suggestions’.
For more information, please visit: www.rakporcelain.com With more and more discussion about the possibilities of opening up various economies around the world, its our hope that this will include the hospitality sector, as well. And, the new RAKstone Collection from RAK Porcelain looks like it has its arrival well-timed. Living digital is fine, but we continue to believe that human beings are hardwired for connection and the hospitality industry provides with that unique forum for getting together and enjoying great times with family and friends. When that happens, providing the best experience possible for guests will no doubt focus on the details. Fresh menus, fresh looks….and, of course, fresh tabletop. “What we did here is create a new body altogether, where it has the physical properties of porcelain but the look and the feel of the stoneware,” says Chief Marketing Officer, Renu Oommen. “We have done a lot of R&D on the glaze part and created a micro-glazing so that the weight of the product will be very, very minimum.” This great new collection from RAK Porcelain – their new RAKstone collection – offers a fresh re-think on color, shape, durability ….and, even the overall weight of the products. While being durable and affordable, each piece of RAKstone appears to be crafted by human hands, owing their look and feel to the great attention paid to details from the beginning design throughout to final production According to RAKstone designer Mikaela Doerfel, who worked especially on the collection’s EASE bowls, “With the design, we thought about taking an overall shape that shows a lot the effects of unique glaze. So that we have very nice rims for that and the colors are very different between the edges and the bowls, for example.”. Doerfel continued, “We paid great attention to details: high quality materials with earthy color tones. The inspiration comes from the process of hand modelling and decoration in traditional studio pottery.” According to the company, the new RAKstone collection was born from the desire to help bring people together - creating and sharing unique dining-out memories. After all, food is one of the ultimate experiences that connects people with one another. On this point, we cannot do anything but agree. After having seen this collection premiered at Ambiente in February, we look forward to now seeing on restaurant tables everywhere very soon, helping to bring us all back together for the very best times we may enjoy. Great colors. Great Textures. Great shapes. All add up to great connections. After having seen this collection premiered at Ambiente in February, we look forward to now seeing on restaurant tables everywhere very soon, helping to bring us all back together for the very best times we may enjoy.
For more information, please visit: www.rakporcelain.com
In this Beyond The Table conversation, TabletopJournal Editor Dave Turner had the opportunity to sit with noted hospitality tabletop leader, Claude Peiffer, on a cool and bright sunny February day in the brand new, upstairs conference room in new, not-quite-100%-finished, European distribution center for RAK Porcelain.
A few weeks ago, when preparing for our visit to The NAFEM Show in Orlando, we knew time there would be very short (just 1 day) but there were a handful of #mustsee brands and products that we definitely wanted to see. And, on that must-see list were the three new embossed dinnerware patterns from RAK Porcelain USA. That was a good call because while we had seen pictures, the actual plates were even better in person. And, while they are quite upscale in appearance – and, frankly, might work very well in white-tablecloth type restaurants …..these three new dinnerware collections were designed specifically for use in high volume, banqueting and catering situations. Oftentimes, when we think of RAK Porcelain and their many new dinnerware products that they’ve launched over the past years…. we tend to think of the more sexy, flashy products. Products like their Metalfusion which boast of Gold, Silver and Bronze truly stunning metallics. Or, we think of the wide variety of colors in their very colorful NEOFUSION dinnerware. But, the truth is RAK Porcelain has many white dinnerware options – both classic and contemporary – in their wide range of dinnerware designs. And with names like HELM…. CHARM …. And SOUL…..these three new white, embossed dinnerware collections are all very comprehensive in terms of the items in each collection. they’re also fully functional, meaning they’re designed to handle the rigors of high-volume banqueting operations. And, to give operators even more comfort in their buying decisions, all three of these new collections are made with RAK’s hi-alumina material giving it strength that is also backed by RAK’s Lifetime Limited Chip Warranty. The HELM, CHARM, and SOUL collections from RAK Porcelain come with such a wide range of items that operators should have no problems creating the perfect place settings for the wide range of menus that banquet and catering operators have to offer. Each dinnerware design has round, square, and rectangular shaped plates and a similar offering of bowls of all types. Cups and saucers also run the full range from small espresso cups to large breakfast cups. We’ve talked before on our SEAT YOURSELF podcast about how banqueting and catering operators are looking to differentiate themselves by offering clients the option of serving their meals on more upscale tabletop products. And, that definitely is a trend….
However, banquet operators also still are demanding that these upscale products perform. RAK Porcelain’s new banquet dinnerware lines Helm, Charm and Soul, do just that. The fundamental beauty, functionality and the strength requirements from high volume users has definitely been designed into these 3 new dinnerware collections from RAK Porcelain. If you’re considering upgrading your banquet service or other high-volume catering facility with new dinnerware, you owe it to your guests to check out RAK Porcelain USA’s 3 new banquet dinnerware collections. To learn more about these new banquet dinnerware designs, get in touch with your local RAK Porcelain USA representative or go to www.RAKPorcelainUSA.com. Recently, we had the opportunity to sit in-studio with new RAK Porcelain USA President & CEO, Gene Williamson to get an update on their launch in North America.
Lots going on with this global tabletop leader as they build upon their existing foundation in North America. Global foodservice dinnerware giant RAK Porcelain has launched its own Western Hemisphere based subsidiary – RAK Porcelain USA – to address the needs of the North American hospitality market. Led by industry veteran Gene Williamson, RAK Porcelain USA will be headquartered in Metro New York. Its expandable modern North American distribution center is online and poised to service from Weirton, West Virginia. “We’ve had a great initial distribution partnership with the HLC Dinnerware company, now is the time for RAK to build on this customer base and take the brand to the success level it currently enjoys around the world,” says Williamson who is President/CEO of the RAK Porcelain USA. “In 10 short years, the RAK brand is on its way to becoming a global leader in trendsetting hospitality tabletop. Now, we intend to bring that leadership to the U.S. market. We are immediately expanding the inventory of RAK products here in our U.S. distribution center to include our newest product launches and additional items to our existing collections.” Launched in 2005, RAK Porcelain has grown quickly to become a world leader in supplying premium quality dinnerware to over 14,000 hotels in 160 countries around the world. Recently, RAK launched several new “high alumina” dinnerware collections and its first collections of world class, stainless steel flatware. Designed by German designer Mikaela Dörfel, the initial collections of flatware are designed to coordinate with RAK’s existing high alumina dinnerware ranges. “Since its inception ten years ago RAK Porcelain has developed a reputation of working with the world’s Top Chefs, Food & Beverage Directors and designers including France’s Marc Meurin, who has earned two Michelin stars at Louvre-Lens museum restaurant, and Catalonia-based dinnerware designer Gemma Bernal,” says Claude Peiffer, CEO of RAK Porcelain, Europe “We are excited to bring that same hospitality driven tabletop leadership to North America, on very aggressive scale.” Created in 2005, the RAK PORCELAIN company is part of the Ras Al Khaimah based RAK CERAMICS group, the world leader in the ceramic tiles industry. RAK PORCELAIN dinnerware products and innovations are perfectly suited to the hospitality market and have proven their extremely high level of technical, functional and economic performance in a record-breaking time with such clients as Hilton Hotels, Sofitel, Marriott, and Italy’s Star Hotel Group.
The creative hand of Hamburg-based designer Mikaela Dörfel and her team is behind RAK's new cutlery collection and its innovative design. Designer Dörfel, who was born in Finland, gets her inspiration from various sources such as architecture or nature. Dörfel does her original sketches in 2D then her team turns them into 3D. According to Dörfel, "The change in volume allows us to observe how it works ergonomically and we see the harmony of the shape. It's exciting."
At the Host Milano show, the majority of all the products on display in the RAK Porcelain stand were all new or at leaast very recent introductions. However, none of these new products may ultimately be more impactful to the guest dining experience than these new cutlery designs.
For more information on RAK's new cutlery or any of their wide range of hospitality tabletop dinnerware designs, go here: RAK: New Cutlery Collection - Very Creative, Very Complementary.... and Very Cool
“Our intention is to give an ‘inside look’ at many of the talents that have supported us to achieve such strong success in an industry that has remained essentially static for many years,” says Lecante. “The rapid rise of the RAK Porcelain brand within the hospitality tabletop industry is unprecedented. Our goal now is that our new PERSPECTIVES magazine will better help industry decision makers of what is possible within the hospitality tabletop industry.”
In its debut issue, PERSPECTIVES profiles chefs such as France’s Marc Meurin, who has earned two Michelin stars at Louvre-Lens Museum restaurant, designers such as Catalonia-based dinnerware designer Gemma Bernal (www.GemmaBernal.com) , and top restaurants like the Les Haras Brewery in Strasburg. On-trend culinary topics such as the mixing of global cultures and the growing use edible flowers also receive special attention in PERSPECTIVES’ inaugural edition. Contact your local RAK Porcelain representative to get your copy on PERSPECTIVES. Since 2007, HLC and RAK have jointly serviced the Hospitality industry. On January 1, 2016 they will begin a new chapter in their long term relationship. RAK and HLC, collectively, will offer more products and additional personnel to the USA Foodservice Industry. Gene Williamson, currently Vice President of Foodservice Sales at HLC, will lead the new venture.
RAK Porcelain will provide The German Chef’s Association with 15,000 items of porcelain so that the high quality of the chefs’ culinary attainments is shown to its best advantage. “Together with the Chefs’ Association, we have developed a new series of oval plates with asymmetrical surfaces for serving”, explains Bodry. “ For the first time in the history of the IKA, the chefs will not serve their Olympic menus on round plates, which means that we can also set new trends in this area”, explained Andreas Becker , President of the German Chefs’ Association. The German Chefs’ Association (Verband der Köche Deutschlands e.V.) and RAK Porcelain announced their long-term partnership right at the beginning of Internorga 2015, the leading trade fair for the catering sector. Over the next six years, RAK Porcelain will support the German Chef’s Association with the two mega-events for chefs from all over the world, the IKA/Culinary Olympics in 2016 and 2020, with a total of over 500,000 euros. Part of this money will also be invested in the German Chefs’ Association’s educational and youth work. “When more than 2,000 chefs from all over the world come together in Erfurt to nominate the best in the business, strong partners are called for. For this reason, we have decided to support the organisers of the IKA/Culinary Olympics, the German Chefs’ Association”, explains Sven Bodry, Head of Sales at RAK Porcelain Europe. “As a globally recognized provider of high-quality professional tableware, we want to make a clear gesture for the catering and hotel sectors in Germany and the whole world”. And the suspense continues….both partners will announce further details of their collaboration at the drawing of the starting positions for the competing teams in October 2015 at the Erfurt Exhibition Centre, the venue for the IKA/Culinary Olympics. For more information on RAK Porcelain and its wide collection of hospitality tabletop products, go here: RAK Porcelain and IKA/Culinary Olympics: Porcelain for the World’s Chefs |
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